Egg whites and egg substitute compositions provide healthy sources of nutrition which are easy for the consumer to prepare. In particular, like whole eggs, they provide high amounts of protein. However, egg whites and egg substitute compositions are typically low in cholesterol and fat, thereby providing a healthy alternative to whole eggs. Egg whites and egg substitute compositions can be provided in a liquid form which is preserved by refrigeration or freezing until cooking, either alone or in combination with other foods.
Consumers frequently desire a final prepared egg white or egg substitute product which includes other food components. An example of such a product is scrambled egg whites or egg substitute including meat, cheese, vegetables or fruits. The addition of other foods to the uncooked egg white or egg substitute prior to delivery of the egg product to the consumer creates a risk of contamination of the egg white or egg substitute by microbes present in the other foods, which may lead to spoilage. One way to avoid this risk is by consumers purchasing the egg white or egg substitute separately from the meat, cheese, vegetable or fruit. Thus the other food items require preparation by the consumer before combining them with the egg whites or egg substitutes at the time of cooking. For example, the other foods may need to be cleaned and cut or broken into appropriate sized pieces to prepare them for cooking with the egg whites or egg substitutes. In addition, the consumer has to control the appropriate proportions of the egg white or egg substitute and other foods to achieve final product with a desirable taste.
One prior art method of providing a mixture of a liquid egg product and vegetables for subsequent preparation of a vegetable omelets is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,910,036 to Rapp. According to this method, the vegetables for the omelets are combined with a sauce prior to combining with the egg substitute. The sauce is a slurry of starch and water to which a food grade acidulent is added either before or after heating to a temperature of 180 to 240° F. The final sauce has a pH of 2.0 to 3.0. The vegetables are added to the acidic sauce and the vegetable sauce is heated to 120° F., passed through a vacuum, then heated to 200 to 240° F. After cooling and packaging the vegetable sauce, it is ready to combine with a liquid egg product.
The use of acidification and high temperatures can produce undesirable results. For example, in order to achieve a low pH, the food grade acids must be added to the food in amounts which can impact the flavor of the product. For example, acids such as acetic acid, vinegar and lemon juice have strong aromas and flavors which are not always compatible with the desired flavor and aroma of the food product. While the addition of flavors and aromas may in itself be undesirable, it also increases the complexity of the processing and formulation of the egg product. The effect of the acids upon the aroma and taste depends on the particulate content of the egg product, such that different types of particulates accommodate different flavors from the acids. As a result, the formulations must be adjusted, depending on the type of particulates being added, in order to accommodate the flavors and aromas introduced by the acids.
In addition to adding flavors and aromas, the use of acidification limits the selection of particulates and other ingredients. For example, acidification may result in unwanted textural effects upon the particulates. While strong acids may not effect the quality of certain vegetables, it may cause hardening of diced ham pieces. An egg product containing hardened ham pieces would not be satisfactory to the consumer. In addition, the use of acidification limits the types of starches which may be used to those which are acid resistant. It is therefore desirable to produce an egg product containing particulates which avoids the use of high heat and acidification.